All-electric two-door roadster brings supercar performance to the table at a fraction of the price.
The adage that “timing is everything” could not be more applicable to MG’s recent return to South Africa.
If the Chinese-owned iconic British marque’s local re-entry was any sooner, it would have struggled to stand out with only SUVs to offer. This space is so saturated with models from the Far East that all of them are starting to look like copy-and-paste jobs from an SUV design app.
But the 101-year-old carmaker had an ace up its sleeve in the form of the MG Cyberster, the world’s first all-electric, two-seater, soft-top sports car. The R1.4-million niche ride is never going to be a volume seller stimulating the brand’s cash flow. That is what its ZS and HS SUVs are there for. What the Cyberster does bring to the table is the kind of wow factor that MG cars of old were renowned for long before its ill-fated second local stint from 2011 to 2016.
MG Cyberster a site to behold
The Citizen Motoring can write books about the attention much more expensive exotic cars, we occasionally cruise around in, gets. Yet the admiration for the MG Cyberster clad in Flare Red paintwork we spent a week in was off the charts.
Whether the car was actually penned at holding company SAIC’s Active Design in London, an important reference to the brand’s proud British heritage, or in China where it is built, the designers did a great job. In paying homage to the famous MGB Roadster from the 1960s, the Cyberster’s electric-operated soft top, Union Jack-inspired taillights, sleek lines and stunning 20-inch machine-faceted alloys with red callipers set the scene for the ultimate party trick; electric scissor doors with frameless windows.
Before the MG Cyberster, the rare sight of car doors lifting up was only associated with supercars like the Lamborghini Aventador and McLaren Arturo. And then only valets at polo clubs got to see them up close and personal. That is why the Cyberster drew the kind of crowds at did even at the local Spar. Onlookers had a tough time keeping their jaws up seeing the doors being opening and closing with a choice of three switches in and outside the car, as well as from the remote key.
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Gaming-type cockpit
The interior does an excellent job of not being outdone by the smashing exterior detail. Only offered along with the red exterior, our tester’s interior was finished in red and black. This configuration comprises black leather, piano black and brushed chrome finishes along with red suede inlays on the sports seats, doors and centre console and a red leather steering wheel.
The cockpit feels like a racing simulator with the heated steering wheel set in front of a tri-cluster surround screen. The latter features a 7-inch infotainment system, 10.25-inch digital cluster and 7-inch driving information screen.
Climate is controlled via a digital screen on the centre console which features alongside an aircraft-like gear selector.
The infotainment system comes standard with Premium Bose sound played over eight speakers and Apple Carplay and Android Auto. One little oddity was that these do not operate wirelessly, while there is also no wireless phone charger.
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Let’s go racing
You get carried away so easily by all the Cyberster’s prettiness that you almost forget this is a sports car. And traditionally that means there are some serious horses underneath the bonnet. Or watts in this case.
The Cyberster’s 77kWh lithium-ion battery drives two electric motors producing a total of 375kW of power and 725Nm of torque. And even though the car weighs a tad under two tons, almost what a double cab bakkie weighs nowadays, it still managed to dart from 0 to 100km/h in a mere 3.57 seconds during Road Test Editor Mark Jones’ test. That is the exact number Mark clocked in the Porsche 911 GT3 RS a few years ago.
The MG Cyberster only needed another 11.06 seconds to reach 200km/h before the limiter kicks in at 208km/h. But enthusiastic driving with the Sport or Super Sport diving modes activated does take its toll on the battery. The claimed range of around 400km can come down very quickly if you have too much fun. The good news is only took half an hour to go from 30 to 80% at a 120kW DC charger.
Why it makes sense
Double wishbone suspension at the front and five-link rear suspension creates of solid ride that is not overly firm, albeit you do tend to feel the car’s weight on uneven roads.
There are four regenerative braking modes that allows effortless one-pedal driving. Augmented soundtracks is also offered to try and fool your brain into believing it comes from the motors.
The MG Cyberster is so easy to drive fast that purists will probably scoff at it for lacking a soul. Or an engine and high-revving exhaust notes. They’d be right, it can never stir your soul like the said 911 GT3 does.
But this car is not about appeasing old school petrolheads. For younger generations whose world is sculpted by what they see on their devices, the Cyberster is as aspirational as the MG roadsters of old were to their grandparents. And for recreating that, at a fraction of the price of a supercar, MG can take a bow.
MG Cyberster test data
